Recovering gasoline from natural gas



Dec. 26, 1922 E. REcovERING GASOLINE FROM NATURAL GAS.

A, STARKE.

f=|LED SEPT. 12, 192|.

Patented Dec. 26, i922,

RECOVEBING GASOLINE FRQM NATURAL GASZ Application iled September 12, 1921. Serial lIlodllft.

To all/whom. may concern:

Beit known 'that I, Emo A. STARKE, a citi zen of the United Stateshresiding at Berke` ley, in' the county of Alameda and State of California, haveinvented certain new and useful Im rovements in I iecovering Gasolinel from gatural Gas, of which the folloW in isa specification. p `Vy invention relates to the art Mering gasoline from a hydrocarbon gas,

.such,for example, as natural gas, by the absorption method.

The object of my invention is to provide for a thorough mechanical mixing of the gas and oil to facilitate the absorption, and to this end my invention consists in the novel apparatus which I shall now fully describe, by reference to the accompanying drawing, in which the figure -is a general view of my apparatus.

1 is a tank to contain the absorbing oil.v

2 is an outlet pipe from the tank, leading to the'suction side of a centrifugal/pump 3 the easing or shell of which I have here shown .25 broken away, to yshow its internal'lrotatable impeller 3. 4 is a pipe leading from a suit able source-of a hydrocarbon gas, and communicating with the outlet pipe v2 from tank 1.

side of the centrifugal pump 3 to a sepa-4 rator. This separator may be of any 'suit'-y able character, but for the sake of illustration I have herein shown it as comprising a plurality of elongated', recumbent vessels 6, With the first of which the pipe 5 communicates. These vessels communicate successively, from the top. of one to the bottom of the next, by pipe 7, at intervals, the last Vessel having a pipe 8 with pressure valve 8', leading from its upper' cross-sectional area for the discharge of the non-absorbed 'residual gas.' From the lowerv cross sectional area. of each separator vessell leads a pipe`9 no to a pipe 10 which leads back to the tank 1.

Thus a closed circuit is provided throughout all the elementsfof the apparatus. p In operation, the absorbing oil and the hydrocarbon gas are introduced together, to` to the suction side of thecentrifuga-l pump.

of recovf 54 is a pipe` leading from the discharge' Y By reason of the. structure of such a pump,

comprising the high speed impeller therein, the oil and gas are thoroughly mixed, and the necessarycirculation, under pres sure, maintained. p

In the separator vessels, the gaseous component of the mixture is separated from the liquid component and is carriedcof, while the liquid component is returned to the tank. As is usual in this art, the enriched oil is taken from the tank, as, for example, by-a pipe 11, to a still 12, and after distillationthe impoverished oil is carried back from the still by a pump 13 through 'a ipe Minto the. tank l, thereby returning a to the system.

lI claimz- ,n 1 1. An apparatus for the described pur-` 'pose comprising, in a closed cil'ci it a centrifugal pump; means for introducing absorbing oil together with a hydrocarbon as,v to the suction side of said pump; a'plura ity' of elongated, recumbent vessels communi eating successively at intervals from the'top-,.

cross sectional area of one to thebotton 76'y cross sectional area of the next; a pipe leading from the discharge side of the'centrif- I ugal pump to the bottom cross sectional area f" of the'rst' of said vessels; means for discharging the non-absorbed residual gas from 8i) the top cross sectional area of the last of said vessels; a still; means for c :onveiyingv the enriched oilfrom the bottom cross sectional areas of fall of said vessels to the still; andv means for returning the impoverished '85 oil from the still to the absorbingoil intro-v ducing means connected .with the suction.. side ofthe pump.

2. An Vapparatus for the described purpose comprising, in a closed circuit, a.' cen- 90 trifugal pump .a tank for the absorbing oil; a connection from a sourceof hydrocarbon gas; means for introducing the gas, from said source connection, together with the oil from said tank, to the suction side of the '9 5 pump; a plurality of elongated, recumbent .vessels communicating successively at inter- `vals from the top cross sectlonal, area 01')v one to the bottom cross sectional area of the next; a pipe leading from the discharge side of the'oentrifugai pump vto th bottom cross sactonal area of the first of 'said vessels; means -or `discharging the non-absorbed residual gas from the top cross sectional area of the last of said vessels; means for conveyngtlle emiidoii from the bottom cross sctional. areas 0f all of said vessels to the tank; a still; a connection for conveying the Oil from the tankto the still; and a Connection for returning theimpoverished l0 oil from the still to the tank.

In testimony whereof have signed mw" nam to this specification.

ERIC A. STARKE` 

